Fate Is A Cruel Mistress
by Kuroheit
Summary: Dazai and Chuuya are soulmates, but neither of them realizes they were fated to be together. Blissfully unaware, Chuuya is in the most wonderful relationship of his life, or so he thought. Tachihara shows his true colors, turning into an abusive tyrant. Can Chuuya escape the fantasy turned nightmare? Will Dazai be there to help him even though he has no idea who is soulmate is yet?
1. Chapter 1

**Once again, I do not own Bungo Stray Dogs, or the wonderful characters, nor do I own the OTP prompt. I can only take credit for the fic that spawned from all the other ideas.**

* * *

It was June nineteenth, Dazai's birthday. His twenty-fifth birthday to be exact. However, this was not the time to be celebrating considering it was forty minutes after midnight. He would much rather be asleep, but something strange woke him up.

His body felt various sensations, but not the sensations of death. If anyone knew what death's caresses felt like it was definitely Osamu Dazai. Nonetheless, he reached to turn his beside lamp on in order to inspect what was going on. With a tug of the blanket he gaped at the marks littering his skin.

The small bruises were everywhere. Or so he thought, but then he took his night clothes off. Dazai stood in the middle of his room completely naked. The 'everywhere' statement proving accurate. Especially on more delicate parts of his body.

That wasn't all. Dazai also felt an invisible weight on his ring finger. What the hell was happening to him? Hickeys all over his body and an invisible ring? Perhaps his sanity was the first part of him to commit suicide. If that were the case, why hadn't the rest of him gone with it?

The answer was simple enough. He had yet to find a willing beauty that would commit lover's suicide with him. Too bad none of his friends were planning that for his twenty-fifth birthday.

Dazai was busy distracting himself from the reality that decorated his body until his brain found the most absurd solution.

One word: soulmate.

He thought it was a ridiculous theory that seeker's of the heart purposefully made up. Turns out that for once, he was wrong. He saw a handful of cases proving the soulmate theory was true. Two of his friends, Atsushi and Akutagawa, had gone through it.

The two of them were fortunate because they already had feelings for one another. As soon as they got past the cute awkwardness of their relationship it became obvious when they decided to take things to the next level. The love bites Akutagawa left on Atsushi's skin also appeared on his own. The soulmate bond playing its part.

Truth be told, not everyone let the soulmate bond bind them to someone else. Ranpo was a classic case. Fate decided his soulmate was going to be Yosano. Instead, he confessed his feelings to Edgar. The pair has been together ever since. Even Yosano managed to move on. Therefore, it was not absolute. Most people only pretended it was.

His brain finally finished processing the situation. His soulmate got married, and possibly decided to have sex with their partner to celebrate. On his birthday no less. Not that his soulmate actually knew that. Fantastic. Hopefully, his soulmate wasn't a beautiful woman who liked the idea of a lover's suicide. If that were the case, fate was trying its hardest to kick him down.

Dazai let out a heavy sigh, falling on his bed. He shut his eyes not bothering to put his night clothes back on. Sleep was the only thing he looked forward to at the moment, and sleep he did (about twenty minutes later).

* * *

Chuuya's life changed for the better after he met Tachihara. Their first encounter was during Chuuya's old job as a waiter. They hit it off really well, and before he knew it, Tachihara became a regular at the restaurant.

A few weeks had passed before Tachihara worked up the nerve to ask Chuuya out. Part of him feared rejection, but Chuuya was happy to accept.

Weeks eventually turned into months. The months turned into a year.

They had been dating for a full year when Tachihara proposed. He promised to give Chuuya everything. A new job, a new place to stay, and a happier life together. There was no possible way the short redhead was going to refuse.

Now, they celebrated their wedding night together in the home they shared. Tachihara was solely focused on making love to Chuuya. His mouth traveling over every inch of the redhead's skin. Chuuya gripped the bed sheets, seductively moaning his name.

"Ngh... T-Tachiharaa... Wait! N-Not there...!"  
"How about begging for more?" the spiky haired brunet grinned.

By the time they were finished it was one o'clock in the morning. Had it been any later, Chuuya wasn't going to want to get up for his new job in the morning. He remained in the dark about what it was. Tachihara told him it was a surprise, making him more anxious. There were plenty of jobs out there that were better than being a waiter, but what sort of job would pay him three times as much?

* * *

Tachihara leaned over to plant a kiss on his lover's mouth, "ready to go to work?"

"They would more than likely reject me on the spot if I went in looking like this," Chuuya laughed.

"Don't be so sure about that." Chuuya dismissed his remark as teasing.

"I'd better take a shower before anything else."

"Wanna shower together?"

The redhead blushed, "not unless I want to be late on my first day."

"Fine. Guess I'll go make breakfast," Tachihara said, throwing whatever random clothes on he found on the floor.

"Is there anything specific I should wear?" Chuuya asked before Tachihara disappeared from their bedroom.

"I wouldn't worry about it too much. I'm sure they'll give you something."

With that, Chuuya hopped in the shower while Tachihara prepared breakfast.

During their meal, Chuuya was determined to get any kind of details about the job from Tachihara.

"Isn't there anything you can tell me? Environment? What the other people working there are like?"

"Why is it so important?" Tachihara took a sip of coffee.

"I'm kind of nervous," Chuuya lied. It was a small white lie. He took a bite of bacon, waiting for the brunet's response. Should he have a response, that is.

"You'll get to meet a lot of different people, and generally have a good time," he finally answered. His vague description sounded promising enough.

Chuuya raised his brow, "see? Was that so bad?"

"No, but you'll owe me later. I might decide to keep you up all night long," Tachihara flicked his tongue over his bottom lip.

"I think I can live with that," Chuuya winked.

The redhead thought Tachihara was going to drive him to work. Instead, they walked. It surprisingly wasn't that far of a walk. Eighteen minutes at the maximum. They eventually stopped in front of a building.

Chuuya read the building's sign, 24/7 Fantasies. He was suddenly overwhelmed with the feeling of nausea. What were they doing stopped at a place like this? Did Tachihara need to catch his breath? Surely the walk was a lot longer.

"What are we doing at a brothel?" Chuuya's voice was barely a whisper.

"Welcome to your new job, babe," there wasn't even a hint of regret in Tachihara's voice.

Chuuya wanted to ask why, but words were failing him.

"Still in shock, huh? That's to be expected. This last year wasn't a complete lie. I do have feelings for you, but you're not the first person I've scouted for this kind of job. With your looks you'll be raking the money in. I'm sure you'll be popular with men and women, and when you're not working I'll have you all to myself. Good deal, right?"

"I... I never wanted something like this... I-It's not a better life. Please... Tell me this is all one big joke," Chuuya was in denial.

Tachihara raised his hand to slap Chuuya. The redhead cradled his cheek, taking a step back from his lover. He knew Tachihara had a temper, but he never took it out on Chuuya. That, like everything else, seemed to change.

"Shit! Look what you made me do. Now they're gonna bitch at me for marking your face. I don't think I hit you hard enough to bruise though," he tightly gripped Chuuya's wrist. "Look, I don't give a fuck about what you want. That stupid ring binds you to me. Whatever I say goes. So get in there, let people have their way with you, and start making money."

Chuuya wasn't aware of it yet, but tears were gathering in the corners of his eyes, threatening to spill over.

Somewhere else, a certain someone felt the very same slap Chuuya received moments earlier.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Alright, this OTP prompt is clearly going to be angsty and full of hurt. I hate the current situation I put Chuuya in, but for the story to have structure and progress it needed to happen. Speaking of progress, this definitely isn't going to be a oneshot like my last one. I can't say how many chapters this fic is going to get, but stick around and find out if you're curious or simply like this fic, and want more. I'm going to post the prompt down below to get it out of the way now.**

The classic soulmate AU where every mark your soulmate gets shows up on your skin. Person A waking up alone on their twenty-fifth birthday with the indentation of a wedding band on their ring finger and hickeys covering them from head to toe.


	2. Chapter 2

**Since I put the disclaimer on the first chapter, I don't think I'm going to put it on every single chapter.**

* * *

Dazai could handle the hickeys. His normal layers of clothing, and his bandages hid them well enough. He could even handle the wedding ring. Once he got used to the weight of it, it became easy to ignore. What Dazai could not handle was the sting from his cheek. No doubt there was a bright red mark, and to make matters worse he was in the middle of work.

He worked an ordinary office job. The territory came with having a lot of co-workers. Someone would eventually notice his red cheek. It was only a matter of time.

"Dazai-san? Are you okay?" a hesitant voice asked.

"And a good morning to you, Tiger. I'm perfectly fine. Thanks for asking."

"You're the only one that calls me by that nickname. No one else bothers to use it. Especially not Ryu," Atsushi complained.

"Meanwhile, you're the only one that calls Akutagawa 'Ryu'. He'd kill the rest of us on the spot if we so much as dared," Dazai dramatically pretended to keel over.

"What's with the red cheek?" Atsushi tried again. "Did one of your victims finally slap you?"

"Victims? It sounds so terrible when you put it like that. I'll have you know that I had to be here early today. Therefor, I had absolutely no time to scope out a potential beauty, and pop the question for a lover's suicide."

"Does that mean it's-"

"Don't say it," Dazai's mood nearly did a one-eighty. "I've already deduced that's exactly what this is, but do I have an inkling of who this person could be? The answer is, I don't have the slightest clue."

"You could always ask Ranpo-san." A shame he didn't work that day. Otherwise, it was a good idea. Before Dazai could reply to Atsushi's suggestion, Kunikida stepped towards them.

"Are the two of you on break already?" Kunikida snapped.

"Kunikudaaaa-kuun~ Atsushi-kun was only showing concern for his fellow co-worker."

The blonde adjusted his glasses, "I know I haven't hit you recently."

"Ah, so you admit you're abusive," Dazai had an irritating glint in his eye. Irritating where Kunikida was concerned anyways.

"You make me that way," he said between gritted teeth. The blonde could only take a certain amount of Dazai in one day. He stomped off, not bothering to keep the conversation going, or continue to reprimand his colleagues.

Dazai spun around a few times in his comfy office chair. "Maybe I'll wait it out and see how the rest of the day goes. Unless he calls off, I can always ask Ranpo tomorrow," he reasoned.

"I better be getting back to my desk. See you during lunch," Atsushi waved.

Once alone, the brunet slumped down, staring eye-level at his computer screen. He hoped the rest of the day played out okay. Perhaps his soulmate got into a petty argument with their significant other. He hadn't felt anything since the slap. Maybe... Just maybe...

* * *

"I'm not going in there," Chuuya shook off Tachihara's grip. His resolve held, but the hurt in his voice was practically tangible.

"Does that mean you don't really love me? Did you let me fuck you for looks alone? Or were you expecting me to be your sugar daddy?" Each word was a like a stab wound in Chuuya's heart.

"Do you really think I'm that low?" the redhead no longer cared about the tears streaming down his face.

"Let's find out," Tachihara shoved him through the front doors of the brothel. They came face to face with the head mistress.

The head mistress was a stunning woman. Her pink kimono was gorgeous, and successfully complimented her looks. The purple, red, maroon, and various shades of pink told their own story on the carefully woven fabric. What really drew people in was the fierce red of her eyes and hair. Natural redheads were rare in Japan. She could have dyed it, but Chuuya doubted it with how even the color looked.

"I was beginning to wonder what was keeping you," she busied herself with looking Chuuya over, but the words were clearly directed to Tachihara.

"As you can see, Kouyou-san," he gulped. "He put up a bit of a fight."

"And the first thing you decide to do is mark his face?" she hissed. "I am taking him in the back to do a thorough inspection." Kouyou lead Chuuya to a secluded room. "Strip."

It was an order the short redhead felt compelled to obey. Although, he couldn't figure out why. He peeled each article of clothing from his body. The hickeys were visible. Not nearly enough time had passed for them to begin fading. Kouyou seemed irritated by the discovery, but she did not lose her cool demeanor.

"Get dressed. I need to have a word with Tachihara," she turned on her heel, leaving him to it.

* * *

"Why did you leave so many marks on his body?"

"I figured I'd loosen him up for your customers, and sort of got carried away."

"Quit making excuses. Did I ever ask you to do such a thing?"

"Why are you complaining? I brought you a natural redhead that's sure to bring in a lot of business in order to stop your customers from pestering you. Isn't that what you wanted? If you don't want him I'll gladly take him back. After all, he is legally mine," Tachihara held up the ring on his finger.

Kouyou sighed internally, "yes, I will take him. Now, take your reward and leave." She handed him a stack of money.

He greedily snatched it up, "let me know when his next day off is. I know I'm going to miss that tight little body." She gave him a curt nod, then he disappeared through the main entrance.

"I hate dealing with that man," she muttered to herself.

Soon, she returned to the dressing room, realizing Chuuya never came back out. She found him huddled in a corner, appearing miserable. His eyes puffy and red from crying.

She carefully knelt down, and used her hand to lift his chin. Their gazes locked.

"To start, what is your name? Tachihara did not bother to tell me." He was too focused on the money.

"Chuuya... Nakahara..." came the dry response.

"Alright Chuuya. This may be a touchy subject, but why not divorce the scoundrel?" she was finding it difficult to give him the kind of work her girls did on a daily basis.

Divorce? They hadn't even been married for a full day, and already there was talk of divorce? In retrospect it made sense, but no one was giving Chuuya time to adjust to anything.

"I don't have the kind of money to file for divorce," part of him wanted to keep loving Tachihara, cherishing what they had. The other part wanted nothing to do with the spiky haired brunet, telling himself to move on in whatever way possible.

"I can offer you a job here. Be warned, the work is not as easy as it seems. However, I can promise that I will take great care of you as I do with all my girls. You would be my first male, but that should not be a problem. If you have any complaints about customers be sure to let me know. Everyone has their limits."

Chuuya pulled his sleeve up his arm, "what about these?" The hickeys were a painful reminder of the last few hours.

"Well, if you are inclined to accept my offer you will not start work right away. We can let those heal first," Kouyou assured.

That alone released some of Chuuya's tension. Working in a place like this wasn't what he had in mind, but it was certainly a start. He could work at 24/7 Fantasies until he earned enough to file for divorce. Afterwards, he could start over with a blank slate.

As good as all that sounded there was one problem that refused to go away. What was he going to do about Tachihara on his days off? To his displeasure, he caught that specific part of Kouyou's and Tachihara's conversation.

"What am I going to do about my off days?"

"Become so popular you won't be able to get time off," Kouyou answered. Which also meant more money would be coming his way.

Chuuya and Kouyou stood up together. He wiped his face on his sleeve. The sorrow in his eyes was replaced with burning determination.

"I'll do it. I'll work here at the brothel." Not for Tachihara's sake. He was going to work there for himself, and only himself.

* * *

 **Author's Note: This fic is going places I couldn't even anticipate. Let's just say that Chuuya is not going to be one of those characters with a weak will. I can say that because I've already finished writing chapter three, but I won't post it for another week or so. It's nice being a chapter ahead of the game, makes me feel like I don't have to rush with my busy schedule and all.**


	3. Chapter 3

Nothing out of the ordinary happened the day before, excluding the slap to the cheek. Dazai also noticed the invisible weight on his ring finger was gone. His soulmate must be moving up in the world. Good for them. Unless it was a fluke, and the day was secretly going to be horrible.

His thought process was interrupted by someone's approach.

"What is it that you need? I hope you know my services don't come cheap."

"I'm guessing Atsushi-kun told you?"

"Your guess would be correct."

"I needed you yesterday, but I'm not sure I'll be needing you today," Dazai confessed.

"However, you will need me eventually," the detective sounded confident.

Ranpo spent half of his time working in the office with everyone else. He spent the remaining half working as a detective. The president of their company viewed him as a valuable asset.

"Since you know so much already I'm sure you'll come running when I find myself in a bind."

Ranpo shrugged, "I could tell you now, though you might not like the answer I have to give."

Dazai's curiosity was piqued, but he wasn't so easily swayed. Until something more happened he planned on letting the situation play out.

"If and when I find other mysterious marks on my body, then I'll have you tell me. Only then."

"As long as you have a reward for me when that day comes, you have yourself a deal," Ranpo left Dazai's desk. Nothing more needed to be said between the two of them.

Owing the detective wouldn't be a problem in the slightest. The brunet could easily afford a couple of different snacks at the local grocery or convenience store.

His work day proceeded like normal. He answered the phone, scheduled and input appointments in the company's data base, and looked over company charts. The usual. By the time lunch rolled around he was somewhat disappointed that nothing significant took place.

Dazai went to his favorite restaurant for lunch. The restaurant was called La Petite Limace. A strange name for a restaurant, but they served the best French cuisine in Yokohama.

It had been a few days since Dazai stopped for a bite to eat at La Petite Limace. He hoped his favorite waiter was working. That's right, waiter. Not waitress.

He might not admit it, but he developed a small crush on one of the waiters. The short redhead with the stunning blue eyes was a part of the reason Dazai was a regular customer. Dazai always thought he would fall for a voluptuous beauty, but couldn't keep his eyes off of the petite male.

One of the waitresses seated Dazai at a table with a window seat.

"Excuse me, miss. Is Nakahara working today?" Dazai let the question escape from his lips.

She gave him a look that said she shouldn't be sharing that kind of information. Although, she leaned down to whisper in his ear, "he stopped working here not too long ago. Something about getting married, and finding a new job."

Married? Married!? No. It couldn't be. Could it? Dazai stared at his ring finger. The gears in his head were turning like crazy.

Fate wasn't kicking him down. It was kneeing him between the legs. Not to mention, Ranpo was right. He needed the detective now.

* * *

Chuuya was bored out of his mind. The only way he liked being unproductive was if he spent most of the day working, which he hadn't. The spare room Kouyou had let him use was nice, but he couldn't sit still for much longer.

Kouyou already introduced him to all the girls that worked at the brothel. What else was there? He felt like his body wasn't healing fast enough. He knew he couldn't speed up the process besides getting rest. Chuuya decided to do the exact opposite.

"Kouyou-san, is there anything I can help with?" he had a feeling she would say no, but it was worth a shot.

"Have I not told you to take it easy?" Many times. More than he bothered to count.

"I don't need total bed rest. My body can complete simple tasks. Besides, I'm not really sore or anything." His body was in decent enough condition. On the other hand, his heart was a totally different story.

"Do you think you can handle being both my custodian and security?" The normal guy who took up those positions called in sick.

"Yeah. Just tell me what needs done," he was eager to have something to keep him busy.

For the rest of the day he cleaned rooms that were no longer in use. He was also in charge of keeping the girls safe. If any of them had a problem with a customer they came to him for help. He always knew taking martial arts at a young age would come in handy one day.

One of the girls came running down the hallway. Her dark hair flowing behind her. The red kimono she usually wore tripped her, causing her to fall. Chuuya caught her before she fell face first on the ground. She was out of breath almost like she was running from someone.

If his memory did him any justice, the girl's name was Kyouka, "are you okay?"

"I do not work today. I came in to drop something off, and got attacked by a customer." Her appearance did seem a little disheveled. "I apologize for running into you."

Chuuya helped her stand up, "it's fine. So where is this guy?"

"He was right behind me."

As if on cue, the creep appeared at the end of the hallway. His face glistened from the gathering sweat. Lust darkened his gaze. His movements were slow now that he spotted Kyouka. A predator hunting his prey. It was enough to make a normal person sick to their stomach.

"I finally found you~" he purred. "And I see you have a friend. If you wanted to do it ménage à trois style all you had to do was ask."

Kyouka took five steps back. Her body tensed up because she was too scared to run away again.

"Leave her alone. She's not working right now," he crossed his arms over his chest. Chuuya had to looked up at the guy, but being short never stopped the redhead before.

"Would you like to take her place?" he inquired, almost politely.

"Sorry. Not my job." At least, not yet.

"I've been denied twice in one day. That settles it then. I'm fucking you both whether you like it or not," he advanced much faster.

"Stay behind me," Chuuya ordered Kyouka. She barely gave him a nod of understanding.

He bent his knees, positioned his arm, and launched himself and the creepy pervert. Chuuya's elbow connected with the guy's jaw, forcing him to stumble backwards. Then, he used his free hand to land a punch on his stomach. The creep completely toppled over, clutching his stomach and rubbing his sore jaw.

For an added bonus, Chuuya placed his foot between the guy's legs. He put all of his weight on that one side. The customer began wailing and begging for forgiveness. Chuuya stepped away for a moment, only to grab the guy by his collar, and literally drag him out of the brothel.

He really enjoyed this kind of work. Maybe Kouyou would let him keep the custodian/security job instead. Although, it might not pay as much, which made him remember why Tachihara brought him there in the first place. He absentmindedly went back inside.

Suddenly, arms wrapped around his torso. He looked down to see Kyouka hugging him.

"Thank you," she said in a quiet voice.

His arms instinctively wrapped around her small frame. "You're welcome," he smiled.

Never mind, he thought, this was much better than worrying about which job payed more. For some reason, seeing Kyouka safe was all the payment he really needed.

Behind the scenes, Kouyou witnessed the whole event play out. Chuuya did a better job than the regular who usually took care of those kinds of tasks. She also noticed that he seemed to perk up a little. He was never meant for the kind job her girls did, but this was right up his alley.

"Never let that weasel control your life again," she whispered. Kouyou might have become even more fond of Chuuya specifically because he went out of his way to protect Kyouka.

* * *

 **Author's Note: It seems my conscious would not allow me to have Chuuya working in the brothel like the girls do, which is why I mentioned in chapter two that this fic was going places I couldn't even begin to imagine. I'm going to be honest, Tachihara is Chuuya's only real obstacle. Now, Dazai also has some things he needs to sort through. I have written up to five chapters, but I'm trying to space out when I post them. Please look forward to more content in the near future. I hope you've enjoyed chapter three.**


	4. Chapter 4

Dazai ran to work the next day, which was a major first. A full plastic bag was cradled in his arms when he burst through the entrance. Stopping at the convenience store cost him precious minutes. Apparently, everyone and their relatives stopped at the convenience store before heading into work or whatever else may be on their busy agenda. The line for the register was ridiculous to say the least.

The brunet didn't bother to stop at his own desk. Instead, he went straight to Ranpo's, dropping the plastic bag on top of his desk. The contents came spilling out. Potato chips, Pocky, lollipops, taiyaki, sweet red bean and matcha buns, Hi-chew, seaweed crisps, and Ramune were sprawled out all over the detective's desk. The scene was common when Ranpo went on break. Otherwise, his desk was pretty neat and organized.

Ranpo swiveled around in his office chair, gazing at the spread. A smile tugged at the corners of his lips.

"Where is he? I need to find him. I don't care that he's married. I just need to confirm a few things," Dazai said in one big rush.

"You did some information gathering, but you want me to give you the last piece of the puzzle?" It was more of a statement rather than a question.

"I'll take any useful hints. Whatever it is you can give me," he insisted.

Ranpo scribbled something down on a piece of paper, handing it over to Dazai, "you're right. You shouldn't care that he's married. It ended in failure." _For both sides_ , is what he didn't say.

"Thanks," the brunet stuffed the note in his coat pocket. He hoped the information was worth the amount of snacks he rushed to get his co-worker.

He sat down at his desk. They say money burns a hole in most people's pockets. The note was doing the same. Fortunately, Dazai only had a half day to get through, but time dragged on nonetheless.

When he clocked out his mind had convinced itself that he was sitting there for an eternity. As soon as he walked outside of the office building, he reached into his coat pocket quickly unfolding Ranpo's note. The messy script was an address. Time to find his soulmate once and for all.

* * *

The address on the piece of paper led the suicide enthusiast to a popular brothel in town. There's no way it was the place he was looking for. Ranpo probably thought it would be fun to play a trick on him.

"And after all the snacks I bought him. He'll get what's coming to him later," Dazai almost turned to leave until something caught his attention.

A short redhead came out of the brothel's side entrance. He held two trash bags, tossing them into the nearest garbage can.

The brunet froze from the sight of him. It wasn't like he planned their meeting out in his head. What was he supposed to say? That they were long lost soulmates? He could come off as crazy if the other didn't believe in the soulmate bond.

 _Come on Dazai, think._

Another person decided to join the party.

"What the hell are you doing?" the spiky haired brunet asked.

"Taking out the trash, obviously," Chuuya lifted the lid of the can up. "How about you hop inside. We have to keep this area clear for the garbage men."

Tachihara slammed his back into the wall, "Kouyou has you playing the maid, huh? Is that one of your customer's kinks? Do you wear a black frilly dress only for them to tear it off of you? I bet you have a pair of matching panties with a large hole already in the back. Then, they can shove it in you without any trouble."

Dazai ignored the pain shooting through his spine. His fury was being fueled by the newcomer's words.

"Fuck off," Chuuya ground out. "Kouyou-san doesn't have me doing that kind of work."

"And why not?" Tachihara pressed himself closer to Chuuya.

"Because she wants me to heal first. All the marks you left on me aren't gone."

Tachihara yanked on the hair Chuuya kept draped over his shoulder, "I know you enjoyed every fucking minute of it. I remember how you begged. God. You sounded so pathetic."

The redhead grabbed Tachihara's wrist, "are you finished? Because I have more work to do."

The spiky haired brunet noticed the gloved hand, "since when have you worn gloves?"

Chuuya snatched his hand away. There was something he didn't want the other to know about. However, it was too late. Tachihara put two and two together.

"You're not wearing the ring anymore. Don't want anyone else to find out you're mine? What a joke. There are plenty of other ways for me to mark you."

He ripped the choker from Chuuya's throat. Tachihara practically bit the skin beneath his lips, sucking as hard as he could. A brand new blemish formed where Chuuya's choker would have been.

"You should have an easier time hiding that one," he laughed. "If you'll excuse me, I have a hot date to get to."

Chuuya bent down to pick his choker up, securing it around his neck once more. Raw emotion flowed from him. Dazai understood why. He experienced the same bite mark. The only difference was his bandages were already concealing it.

"How did I fall in love with a vulgar guy like him?" the redhead sighed. He closed his eyes not quite ready to go back inside the brothel yet.

Dazai took a small step forward, and Chuuya's eyes flew open. They stayed like that for a while, keeping a few feet apart.

Chuuya's look of confusion was replaced by a look of recognition, "I... remember you. You're one of La Petite Limace's regulars."

"I'm relieved to hear that you haven't forgotten me, strawberry short cake," Dazai grinned.

"How could I possibly forget a bandage wasting device like you," Chuuya's grin was smug, but it was easy to tell he was enjoying himself. "I don't work at the restaurant anymore so if you've got a complaint go talk to someone else."

Dazai shook his head, "I was there yesterday, and the food was spectacular like always. I've come to see you for a different reason." He began to unwrap the bandages around both arms. Afterwards, he moved to the ones around his neck.

Chuuya blinked in surprise. The marks littering Dazai's skin were eerily familiar. What did it mean? One word floated around the back of Chuuya's skull. The single word worked its way to the front of his brain, stating the undeniable truth; soulmates.

"You're trying to tell me you're my soulmate?" he couldn't believe it.

"That's right, Chuuya~" he nearly forgot Dazai liked to say his name in that stupid singsong voice.

"Soulmates or not, you've found me at the worst time possible."

The redhead wasn't sure if he was ready for a new relationship so soon. He had Tachihara and the divorce to worry about. Plus, not everyone got together with their soulmate. He was going to become used goods anyhow. If he bothered to count the night of his marriage, then he already achieved that status.

Chuuya wasn't all that close with Dazai to begin with. Every time he served Dazai they always ended up teasing each other. Some might call them friends, but that was as far as it went. He never saw the brunet outside of La Petite Limace. They hadn't exchanged much information about each other either.

"Why is that?" Dazai tilted his head slightly.

"I have so many other things to worry about. Having a soulmate is at the very bottom of the list," Chuuya opened the side entrance. "It was kind of nice catching up with you," he admitted. "But forget about everything you think we might have had."

It was cruel. He knew it was, but the blank slate he yearned for would be unattainable if people from his past decided to stay latched on to him. His waiter days were over. La Petite Limace stood in the shadow of his past. The only way now was forward.

Dazai watched the door close behind Chuuya. He couldn't let it end like this. They were soulmates for a reason, and he was happy to share that with Chuuya. The rejection hurt the most. Was that something the redhead could feel too? Or did the bond only force them to share physical pain?

* * *

 **Author's Note: Feeling the feels yet? ;) Also, I meant to put a note for this in the last chapter, but for anyone that might be curious, Limace is the French word for slug. That's why Dazai said the name is odd because La Petite Limace literally translates to The Small Slug. Well, that's all I've got for this author's corner. Until next time.**


	5. Chapter 5

A few days passed since Chuuya and Dazai's last encounter. Chuuya kept busy with his work at the brothel. Kouyou officially promoted the redhead. He was allowed to permanently stay on the security/custodian position. Chuuya did not hesitate to accept.

Despite what Tachihara thought, there was no way Chuuya would be content with selling his body to other people. The idea of that kind of job made him cringe. Although, he respected the girls that could do it. Some might call them desperate, but really, he thought they were brave. Braver than he was.

Chuuya worked a morning, and was free to do whatever he wanted for the rest of the day. Problem was, he had no ideas where to go. Especially by himself. He could walk around aimlessly, and end up doing something spontaneous. In the end, Chuuya opted to play it by ear.

"Ane-san, I'm heading out!" he called, throwing his coat over his shoulders.

Ever since he rescued Kyouka, Kouyou insisted that he should call her 'ane-san'. If he didn't know any better, he would think she was originally from the mafia or something. Nowadays, they were the only ones who used that term.

"Alright, but do try to stay out of trouble," she called back. It was like having a concerned elder sister. He would be lying if he said he didn't appreciate the feeling it gave him.

He felt something tugging on his jacket, but not hard enough to pull it from his shoulders. Chuuya turned around to see Kyouka. She appeared nervous, and focused her gaze on the floor. Chuuya crouched down to get a better look at her. She was one of the few people that was shorter than himself.

"Is there anything you need to tell me?" he asked.

"Tofu," came her one-worded response.

"Huh?" It took him a second to realize what she was getting at. He remembered Kouyou saying how much Kyouka liked tofu. He wanted to laugh, but thought better of it. Based on the blush dusting her cheeks it took her a lot of courage to get that one word out.

"Yeah. I can pick some up for you. I don't know when I'll be back though so you'll have to wait up for me," he said, standing up.

"That is fine," her face lit up with excitement.

Now Chuuya knew he'd be stopping at a place that sold tofu, but that was only one out of many other things he could be doing. Taking a walk around the city was an appealing idea. Perhaps something unusual would catch his attention.

Taking in the sights of Yokohama swept his worries away, and with no one there to bother him it was relaxing. He walked, and walked, and walked. Only stopping to grab a bite to eat. A part of him considered going to La Petite Limace, but that increased his chances of running into a certain someone.

He tried to forget all about Dazai. To tell the truth, it was difficult. Chuuya wanted to blame the soulmate bond, but wondered if there was something more. He shook his head in order to clear his mind. Chuuya could deal with everything later.

Avoiding one restaurant led him to a small corner cafe. It didn't look very busy, and Chuuya was growing accustomed to the peaceful quiet. He stepped inside, ready to find himself a seat. As it so happened, fate had other plans for him.

"Chuuya~! Over here!" Dazai motioned for him a couple of seats over.

The short redhead groaned. It was too late to back out now. Otherwise, the waste of bandages would more than likely cause a scene.

Chuuya sat directly across from Dazai. A waitress came to take his order while Dazai munched on his boat of sushi. Chuuya ordered a tall glass of iced tea, but that was it. The brunet was going to ask why he hadn't ordered any food. That is, until Chuuya removed his gloves to pop a piece of sushi into his mouth.

"You should remove your ridiculous hat too. We are inside an eatery after all," Dazai pointed out.

"Tch. Why did you bother calling me over here in the first place?" To Dazai's dismay, Chuuya actually took his hat off, setting it down next to him.

"You ask me that, yet you're the one partaking of the food I paid for," the brunet took a sip of his drink.

"Spit it out already, mackerel."

"Is it so wrong to want to eat with my favorite hat rack?" he placed his hand over his chest like he was taken aback.

"You want me to punch you, don't you? I suspect you're a complete masochist," the redhead took another piece of sushi.

"I enjoy your threats, but you would never harm my pretty face," Dazai innocently blinked several times.

Chuuya cracked his knuckles, "try me."

Dazai leaned over the small table, closing the distance between the two of them. He pressed his lips to Chuuya's. He lightly bit the redhead's bottom lip playfully, then he pulled back. Chuuya sat frozen in place.

"Unfortunately, I have to go back to work. You can finish the rest of the sushi off if you like. My treat," he winked.

When Chuuya came back to reality the brunet was long gone. His heart refused to stop beating so rapidly. The worst part, he could have sworn his heart did a back flip during the time of their kiss. The blush on his cheeks only just beginning to fade.

"Stupid, shitty Dazai," he muttered to himself. He ate what remained of the sushi boat, and drank all of his iced tea. After gathering his hat and gloves, he headed to his next destination.

A popular tofu stand was a long way from the cafe. Good. He could forget what happened with Dazai on his walk to the stand. By the time he got there, the line was sort of long, not that he minded. Who knew tofu was so amazing? To be this popular they probably had to add a special ingredient or sauce.

Once it was his turn he bought Kyouka six pieces of tofu, and had them write her name on the styrofoam container. Hopefully, six pieces was enough because he didn't want to disappoint her.

Leaving the tofu stand, Chuuya realized the afternoon was quickly turning into evening. The walk was deceivingly longer than he thought. Oh well. Next stop, the nearest bar.

Chuuya wished he could afford an expensive bottle of wine to enjoy, but alas that wasn't the case. However, he could afford a few cheap drinks at the bar. It wouldn't be nearly as good, but he was willing to make do.

Ten shots later and he was already drunk. The fiery redhead loved alcohol, but he couldn't hold it very well much to his displeasure. He slumped forward in his chair; hand protectively resting atop the container of tofu like someone was going to steal it.

Chuuya tried his best to fight the drowsiness, but sooner or later he was going to pass out cold.

Someone at the other end of the bar eyed up the drunk redhead. A grin plastered on his face. Tachihara moved to the back of the bar to let his lackeys know it was time for them to act. The two muscular guys, dressed in black, listened to his orders. They took action without a second thought because the amount they were getting paid was well worth it.

They calmly and quietly approached Chuuya from behind. One of the men rested a hand on his shoulder, and made sure he was out cold. The other rested his hand on Chuuya's thigh. He carefully moved his hand over. Then, he gripped between the smaller male's legs. A soft moan escaped the redhead's lips, but it wasn't enough to stir him awake. The two men were looking forward to their night of fun.

"Excuse me, gentlemen, but the petite redhead is with me. If you don't kindly remove your hands from him I might have to force ya," the voice from behind them said.

They turned to find a tall brunet, holding up a peace sign like some cliché defender of justice.

"Who the hell is this clown?" one of the men asked the other.

"That's not very nice," Dazai reached into his coat pocket, revealing Chuuya's knife. He swiped it from him earlier in the day. Dazai assumed Chuuya hadn't noticed, and wouldn't be noticing anytime soon. "I know I don't look like it, but I know how to use this," his voice dropped from playful to serious in an instant. His eyes clouded over with intent that scared the two men off. "That was easy," Dazai went back to his cheerful, grinning self.

The brunet carried Chuuya out of the bar bridal style. He also made it a point to grab the takeout container. Should Chuuya wake up now he would be pissed, and demand Dazai to put him down. On the other hand, Dazai was confident that wasn't going to happen.

He thought about dropping Chuuya off at the brothel, but what would the fun in that be? Not to mention, his place was much closer to their current location.

"Looks like you're spending the night, Mr. Fancy Hat."

The suicide enthusiast was responsible enough to call the brothel, and let Kouyou know Chuuya was safe and sound. He even mentioned the container with someone's name on it. The call was brief. She instructed Dazai to bring Chuuya and the container to the brothel in the morning. That was all.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Enough with the feels. Instead, their relationship might very well be progressing. Just keep in mind that the feels will be returning. Stay tuned for more.**


	6. Chapter 6

Chuuya awoke with a start. The room was cast in nothing but shadows, indicating it was the middle of the night. After his eyes adjusted to the darkness he realized his surroundings were unfamiliar. Panic overtook the redhead. The last thing Chuuya remembered was drinking at a bar.

He bolted upright in the bed that wasn't his, throwing the covers back. What happened to his clothes? Everything he wore out earlier was gone except for his underwear and, he pressed a hand to his throat, his choker. Although, he was wearing a T-shirt that was one size too big.

Chuuya began to think he got so drunk that he either slept with one of the customers at the brothel, if he was coherent enough to make it back there. Or he slept with some random person at the bar. Neither option appealed to him.

"I have to get the fuck out of here," he whispered to himself.

Without any warning, a pair of arms wrapped around Chuuya's waist, pulling him down. He got ready to hit the creep, but then it registered that he was laying next to Dazai. Warmth and a false sense of security overwhelmed the short redhead. He couldn't particularly say why, but he felt safe wrapped in the brunet's arms. He allowed himself to snuggle closer to Dazai.

He planned to save all of his questions for the morning. For now, he fell asleep with ease, which he hadn't been able to do for the last week and a half. Whether or not it was the soulmate bond that made him feel that way, he didn't care because it felt right.

So much for cutting Osamu Dazai out of his life.

* * *

Waking up a second time wasn't nearly as nerve-wracking as the first. The chill passing through the room made Chuuya pull the blanket tighter around himself. He wanted to seek out Dazai's warmth, but found that he was the only one occupying the twin bed. Chuuya left the comforts of the bed in order to find the brunet. It was time to get all of his questions answered.

He walked out of the bedroom, noticing a weird draft. The coolness of the air tricked him into believing he wasn't wearing anything underneath the large white T-shirt. He distinctly remembered wearing underwear hours before. The redhead attempted to ignore the draft, but it was distracting. Looking around to make sure he was alone in the hallway, he lifted the bottom of the shirt up.

"What's this? Flashing me so early in the morning? How bold," Dazai said, leaning against a wall with a look of amusement dancing across his features.

Chuuya immediately pulled the shirt down to cover himself up. His face turning a shade of deep red. Whether it was from anger or embarrassment, Dazai couldn't differentiate. It was probably a mix of both.

"You damn pervert. What did you do to me!" Chuuya shouted the accusation.

Dazai held his hands up in defense, "I'm one-hundred percent innocent."

"Like hell you are! Where did all of my clothes go, and why am I wearing nothing under this?" the redhead's tone was clipped and annoyed. The blush on his face still present.

"I put most of it in the wash, scout's honor. I was going to leave your underwear alone, but I threw those in too in case you decided to get a shower. None of my stuff will fit you since you're so short," he shrugged.

"My being short has nothing to do with this, asshole! What did you see?"

"Relax, princess. I didn't see anything. Even if I had it's not like we don't have the same stuff hanging between our legs." His nonchalance was mystifying.

Oddly enough, Chuuya believed him, and he was going to disregard the princess remark. Where did he come up with all of the idiotic nicknames?

"Alright, fine. What I really want to know is, what happened yesterday? And why you brought me here."

"I happened to be strolling through when you were passed out drunk in the bar. I stopped your ex's goons... Can I call him that?" Chuuya nodded his approval. "Well, I stopped his goons from molesting you. Had I not been there they were going to take it a bunch of steps further. Then, I brought you here because my place was a lot closer."

Dazai's explanation had Chuuya feeling somewhat guilty about the way he'd been acting.

"Thanks. You... really didn't have to do that."

"You're right," Dazai left some words unsaid, but figured there was no point in pushing his luck.

"What about the-?"

"Tofu?" the suicide enthusiast finished for him. "It's in the refrigerator, leading up to my next point. How about some breakfast?"

"Breakfast sounds good. I haven't eaten anything since the sushi boat," Chuuya followed Dazai into his kitchen, taking a seat at the island placed in the center of the room. "Wait. Can you cook?"

"That's debatable. It depends on which of my friends you ask."

The small redhead got up from his seat, "you better sit down. I'll do the cooking."

Dazai didn't bother to complain. He wasn't especially fond of cooking. It also depended on what he was cooking. Some dishes turned out well. Meanwhile, others turned his kitchen into a disaster zone.

Dazai watched Chuuya move about the kitchen like he lived there long enough to know where everything was. It was a pleasant sight, and one he wished he could be greeted by more often.

"Dammit," Chuuya mumbled, bending over to pick something up that he dropped. The T-shirt hiking up in the back. Dazai unintentionally got a private peepshow, but it was over in a matter of seconds. He checked to make sure he wasn't having a classic anime nosebleed. Or else, Chuuya would suspect something was up.

Time passed by in the blink of an eye, and there the petite redhead was, serving him breakfast. It looked like a thick piece of matcha cake.

"Didn't want a nutritious breakfast?" Dazai teased. In truth, the meal appeared scrumptious, and smelled heavenly.

"Technically speaking, it is a pancake," he replied. "Using the rice cooker to make it gives it a light fluffy texture. I've been wanting to try the recipe out. It just so happened you had all the ingredients the recipe called for. Milk or coffee?"

Dazai took a bite of the matcha pancake. The taste was indescribable.

"Milk," he was afraid the coffee would overpower the blissful taste of the pancake.

Chuuya poured Dazai a glass of milk, "I'm going to make a pot of coffee anyways. Caffeine is how I function in the morning."

All of this was too good to be true. Dazai was half tempted to ask Chuuya to marry him on the spot, but that would mean putting a lot of extra pressure on Chuuya. He knew how complicated his situation was. Would the redhead accept the money if Dazai gave it to him? Not that he was overly rich. Regardless of that fact, he would happily give him the necessary amount.

The brunet distracted himself with doing the dishes while Chuuya ate his portion of the matcha pancake. The conversation died down a bit. After Chuuya was finished eating he decided to take Dazai up on the offer of a shower. He had to head to the brothel eventually. Might as well get a shower first.

He let the warm water wash over his body. The caffeine fueling his brain to over think every single thing that's been happening to him recently. Showers were the perfect place to organize one's thoughts. All of the stuff he did for Dazai is exactly what he pictured himself doing for Tachihara when he blindly assumed their relationship was perfect.

"We're not so much as dating, yet I can think of a million reasons why he's better than Tachihara," his heart knew exactly what it wanted, but a large part of him was also confused. "You have to deal with Tachihara first," Chuuya reminded himself.

Anymore time in the shower, and Dazai was sure to make fun of him for showering as long as girls typically do. Chuuya got out, toweling himself off, and getting dressed in record time considering his layers of clothing and accessories.

"Ready to go?" Dazai asked, handing him the container of tofu for Kyouka.

He nodded, accepting the container.

They walked in silence. Not because it was difficult to find the right words, but simply because they enjoyed each other's company. The brothel could be seen in the distance. Kouyou stood outside, waiting for the two of them with Kyouka at her side.

"Ane-san... Kyouka-chan... I'm sorry if I worried you," he meant every word.

Kouyou crossed her arms over her chest, "you should be. But I am glad to see that you are alright. Whether or not Kyouka shows you the same forgiveness I cannot say."

Chuuya held the styrofoam container out to the younger girl, "I know it's not as fresh, but I hope you enjoy it regardless."

She ignored the tofu altogether, moving passed the container to cling to Chuuya. For someone smaller than him she sure had a death grip.

"I thought something bad might have happened to you," she whispered.

He rested his free hand on her shoulder in reassurance, "I promise not to do anything like that again. So long as it's under my control," he thought back to the story Dazai told him about Tachihara's lackeys. A situation like that may very well be out of his hands.

Kyouka stepped away from him, taking the tofu with her, "thank you." Her emotions were split between happiness and worry.

"I accomplished my task so I guess I should be heading out," Dazai stated, but Kouyou stopped him from leaving.

"There is something else I need you to do for me."

"What is it, ane-san?" Dazai questioned with a tilt of his head.

"I never gave you permission to call me that," a sense of warning snaked around her words. "Get Chuuya out of her before _he_ shows up, and do not bring him back."

"Ane-san, what are you saying?" dread filled Chuuya's entire being.

"I planned to give you the day off, and the weasel managed to find out about it. He also knows you have not been doing the kind of work he intended for you to do. It is best if you leave while you can. Otherwise, he will drag you out of here by force, and do who knows what to you. You may gather your things, but I suggest you do so quickly."

The redhead's life was turning upside down once again. He barely worked at the brothel for a week. How was he supposed to suddenly go on the run? Why wasn't he allowed to sit down and take life at a semi-normal pace? Chuuya absently stuffed his scarce belongings in a bag, slowly gaining a headache from all the chaos.

* * *

"I like to believe I am a decent judge of character. Therefore, I am trusting you to take care of Chuuya. His safety is to be your top priority. Understand?" Kouyou didn't want to make demands, but the urgency of the situation kept her from worrying about her stern phrasing.

"That's been my goal since I found out he's my soulmate. In all honesty, I did fall in love with him before finding out," Dazai admitted.

"Soulmate?" Chuuya never mentioned anything about a soulmate to her before.

A set of footsteps could be heard, "where's my slutty little redhead?"

The three of them cringed at Tachihara's voice. Kouyou protectively stepped in front of Kyouka to shield her from the awful man.

From just inside the doorway, Chuuya heard his voice as well. His dread now rooting him to the spot. He was too late.

"Back at my place," Dazai answered Tachihara's question. A bluff might be their only solution for the problem standing before them.

* * *

 **Author's Note: This is when things really start to get interesting or so I'd like to think. Besides the last section of this chapter, overall it's my favorite chapter that I've written for the fic. Probably because Dazai and Chuuya get to spend some quality time together. I looking forward to writing another chapter where they can enjoy each other's company. If you've stuck around this long, maybe let me know what you think?**


	7. Chapter 7

"Something tells me that's a lie," Tachihara sneered, resting a hand on his hip. His other arm dangling at his side.

"How exactly would you know?" A thought struck Dazai. He prayed Tachihara wasn't possessive enough to place a tracking device on Chuuya.

"You're not his type because you ain't anything like me." He was a pretentious jackass if Dazai ever saw one.

"I'm beginning to think it's you that isn't his type," the suicide enthusiast countered.

"I can't stand talking to you anymore," he pulled a pair of guns out from under his jacket, and pointed the left one at Dazai and the right one at Kouyou. "Maybe you can tell me where he is, Kouyou-san."

The lovely head mistress of the brothel was more than ready to retaliate. Except, Chuuya beat her to it. He now stood in the way of the twin guns.

"Don't you dare involve them," the redhead's voice dropped to a dangerous low. "Whatever this is, is between us. No one else."

"Are you ready to come home and be my private sex slave? I'll keep you in a pretty gilded cage," the spiky haired brunet crooned.

"I'd rather drop dead, but I also prefer to settle the scores I've collected. Allow me to settle this, and be rid of you for good."

"Does that mean you've got the divorce money?" There was an underlying note that said Tachihara was anxious.

"Hell no. Beating the ever living shit out of you is the next best solution," Chuuya clenched his fists.

Dazai thought it to be a decent time to toss the redhead his knife, "catch, Chuuya~!"

He caught it without having to turn around. Then, he inspected the knife in his hand.

"Bastard! How long have you had this?"

"Since yesterday," Dazai grinned, despite the situation they were in.

"So, you wanna fight? Fine. But we're not doing it here. I've got a place we can go. We'll have all the privacy we need," he looked at the three people standing behind Chuuya. "You can't bring any friends with you either," he added.

The short redhead sighed with irritation, "whatever. Let's just get this done and over with." His confidence in his martial ability overtook his better judgment.

"Chuuya, that might not be the best idea," Dazai warned. "He probably has guys out wherever, waiting to ambush you. He strikes me as that kind of coward."

"Oh I know," Chuuya replied. "That's exactly what I'm anticipating. If I'm lucky I'll get a nice workout. Unless they're total weaklings," he shrugged like it wasn't a big deal either way. "I can assure you I'll be fine."

Dazai, Kouyou, and Kyouka, who decided to stand beside Kouyou, watched Chuuya leave with Tachihara. Any other words to try and stop him would be wasted. Once Chuuya made up his mind there was no going back. They all knew that.

A terrible voice whispered in the back of Dazai's head. It kept telling him he was going to lose something precious. The voice might have been the essence of the soulmate bond, but it didn't matter what it was because he ignored its cruel, twisting words. Ignored them until silence consumed him. The silence more alarming than the words.

* * *

"Really? An abandoned lot? Is this supposed to be a schoolyard beat-down?" Chuuya was nowhere near impressed.

"Call me old fashioned." With the snap of Tachihara's fingers, over fifty men swarmed into the lot, taking up more than their fair share of space.

The redhead cracked his neck and rolled his shoulders, loosening some of the tension within his upper body, "this is what I call a warm welcome."

He jumped into the fray, throwing punches without a second thought. His system was wired for this sort of thing.

The spiky haired brunet stood at the outer edge of the lot, watching Chuuya take down one guy after the next. He wasn't worried though. Chuuya's stamina wouldn't hold out forever. When he gets to the point of near exhaustion, Tachihara planned to drag him back home. Then, he wouldn't be able to put up much of a fight.

The redhead decided to make a game out of the brawling spree. The goal was to see how many guys he could take out without having to use his knife. Seven of Tachihara's lackeys already laid unconscious on the ground. Chuuya stretched his leg out to trip up the eighth guy. He spun around, twisting the ninth one's arm, effectively breaking it. One by one they dropped like flies beneath his feet.

The next thing he knew, they were ambushing him. They were slow to figure out there was an advantage in numbers. What else did he expect from guy's hired by Tachihara? Their attacks were easy to avoid for the most part, but he felt a stabbing pain from his side. He looked to see a blade embedded in his skin. Chuuya knew it would be better to keep the knife in rather than bleed out. However, someone took the knife back anyway.

Was it guy number ten or eleven? Who really cared? Chuuya didn't. He only wanted to make every single one of them pay. Another stab wound equaled four more men gone. Eventually he lost count. He wouldn't stop until he was the only one left standing.

Tachihara couldn't believe his eyes. The short redhead was bruised, battered, and bleeding all the while refusing to admit defeat. And he tried to restrain that monster. Goosebumps pricked his skin. He debated whether he wanted to stay and watch everything play out or if he wanted to leave while he had the chance. He chose the latter. It was easier to live another day, and come up with a better strategy later.

Chuuya wasn't keeping track of time either. He didn't know how long it took him to get to the last three guys. He did know they were the only three obstacles standing in his path. He also knew exhaustion began to plague him.

It was now or never. He grabbed the blade strapped to his thigh, gripping the handle tight. The blade hummed through the air, making quick work of the three brutes. His body begged him to be done, but one giant obstacle remained. Chuuya scanned the lot in order to seek out Tachihara. When he came up empty his body finally shut down.

The blood loss too great. Exhaustion weighing him down like gravity. His joints and muscles ceased their screeching in agony. Chuuya's negative thoughts were numb for the very first time.

* * *

Dazai walked the streets of Yokohama searching for his soulmate a second time. He stopped ignoring the words from earlier, but they never did come back. Strange how silence spoke more than words ever could. Dazai closed his eyes, listening to the busy port city. He wanted to pick up on something abnormal. Anything that might lead him to Chuuya.

The sound of sirens caught his attention. He took off in that direction. He really didn't want to admit it, but he could use the help of a certain detective again.

Lo and behold, Ranpo was the first person Dazai spotted at the crime scene. He stood next to a taller male with messy black hair: Edgar. He doubted it was anybody else. The brunet steered his way in their direction.

"What's going on?" Dazai breathed out heavily. He hunched forward, resting his hands on his knees not quite catching his breath.

"It's your soulmate," he answered before turning to Edgar. "Stay here in case the police have any other questions." Afterwards, the detective walked away, expecting Dazai to follow him. The suicide enthusiast trailed Ranpo like a shadow.

Upon reaching Chuuya's body they came to a stop. It was sad how they beat the ambulance there. Dazai would have hauled the redhead into his car, and drove him to the hospital. That is, if he had a car. Not that it would do him any good considering he was walking to begin with.

His eyes roamed Chuuya's body. There were way too many marks covering him. Marks. Marks?

That was when the ambulance came to take his soulmate away. He might have tried to stop them, at least until they could assure him Chuuya was in a stable enough condition, but his focus remained elsewhere.

Why hadn't he felt Chuuya's pain? Dazai was positive he didn't have similar marks on his body. Did that mean their soulmate bond was no more? Dazai ripped the bandages from his arms, and was met with clear, unblemished skin minus the scars from untold stories (the hickeys faded away earlier in the week). Only one dark conclusion loomed over him. One he wasn't willing to accept.

"Tell me the truth. Chuuya's dead, isn't he?"

* * *

 **Author's Note: I mean, who can say for sure? Find out next week in chapter eight of Fate Is A Cruel Mistress! Thanks for reading~!**


	8. Chapter 8

More of the hideous silence Dazai was beginning to loathe filled the gap between himself and the detective. The sirens from the police cars were muffled by it, and all the chatter in the background sounded far away.

Dazai grabbed Chuuya's knife from the bloodied grass. He could end his pain and suffering with a smooth stroke of the blade, allowing himself to join his soulmate in the afterlife. Dazai wished for a better version of his lover's suicide, but fate adored screwing him over in ways he couldn't fathom.

Ranpo let out a sigh of annoyance, having figured out Dazai's intentions with little to no effort, "I wouldn't do that if I were you."

"Do what? Is it wrong of me to keep a memento of my soulmate?" Dazai was renowned for his acting ability, but it wasn't possible for him to fool the great detective, Edogawa Ranpo.

"I never answered your prior question. Let me do that, and then you can decide whether or not it's worth killing yourself."

Dazai slipped the knife into his coat pocket, "fair enough. You've got my full attention."

"Speaking as someone with experience, I can tell you that true love breaks the soulmate bond. I know, it sounds really sappy, but it's the truth. How else do you think Yosano and I were able to go our separate ways? When I truly fell in love with Edgar all the marks I received stopped appearing on Yosano's body. Although, he doesn't leave a lot of marks on my body to begin with. It's usually the other way around."

"T.M.I." Dazai cut in.

"My point is, none of his marks showed up on your body because you're head over heels in love with him. It isn't because he's dead," Ranpo finished explaining.

Everything made perfect sense now. He noticed a similar change between Atsushi and Akutagawa. With closer inspection it was possible to tell the two of them became more involved. The puzzling part was the lack of hickeys they had to hide. At one point, he wondered if they were taking a break from their sex life, and as much as he liked picking on Atsushi, he never bothered to ask.

Relief hit Dazai hard enough that he let his body fall to the blood drenched grass. He landed in roughly the same spot Chuuya had been moments ago. He didn't care in the slightest about the stains his coat would receive.

"I want to visit him tonight, but by the time they get him situated visiting hours will be over," the brunet was simply speaking out loud.

"What are you going to do until then?" Ranpo inquired out of curiosity.

"Trying for some small talk, eh? Because, like most things, I'm pretty sure you already know."

"Indulge me," the detective rolled his eyes.

"Alright. I'm trying to figure out a cunning way to get Tachihara arrested. I'm between using your connections and setting him up. I'm also not opposed to the idea of both if you'd be inclined to do so," Dazai wasted no time scheming.

"I love it when people owe me. As a matter of fact, Officer Minoura owes me for helping out with his last case. I can guide him through this one no problem," he used his pointer and middle finger to adjust his glasses.

"What's the damage this time?" Dazai assumed Ranpo wanted twice the amount of snacks he gave him last time.

"Three times the amount," he held three of his fingers up for emphasis.

"Now you're just being stingy," the brunet complained, but between the two of them they knew he was going to comply all the same.

"When do you want our plan to take its course?"

"Tomorrow after I visit Chuuya," Dazai replied.

"You don't have a shift to worry about, do you?" Ranpo's brain already connected most of the dots. "Getting two off days in a row by bringing up soulmates. I might be stingy, but you're as conniving as ever," the detective shook his head.

"I knew President Fukuzawa would understand if I brought up my soulmate. It's not like I was lying to him." Without a doubt, Fukuzawa could have done without the memories Dazai dredged up.

Once upon a time, the President of their company found the soulmate of his dreams. She was a gorgeous beauty who treated him like a king. Likewise, he treated her like a queen. It was the happiest any of his employees had ever seen him. It was almost like watching them achieve their own version of happily ever after.

Before they knew it, their souls intertwined to become one. What happens when one half of the combined soul is ripped away from its other half? The half left behind is a broken, shattered mess. That's exactly what happened to Fukuzawa and his soulmate. The president of a rival company took her away from him. The name of his rival was Mori Ougai.

As smart, growing entrepreneurs, the two of them were always butting heads. For the most part, the values of their companies remained equal. When Fukuzawa found his soulmate his company suddenly began to outperform Mori's company. The only logical thing to do was take the root of Fukuzawa's success out of the equation.

With his reliable connections, Mori used hired guns to take out his rival's soulmate. Unfortunately for Fukuzawa, they were successful. His grief put his company in a dire position. He almost lost everything until he managed to turn his grief into determination. The best way to get back at Mori was to outperform him once more with what little he had left. To this day, President Fukuzawa's company floats above Mori's by a mere fraction.

"I'll go talk to Minoura-san and see what I can do. Unlike you though, I have to work in the morning," Ranpo pouted.

He left Dazai to go make sure Edgar was okay. For being such a tall, intimidating looking man he did not like crowds of people at all. The chatter from said crowd also made him nervous. He was a wreck on most outings they shared together, but Ranpo didn't mind. It only made him want to tease the other more.

Dazai had no desire to get up and move. He rolled his head to the side, noticing a bag some inches away from him. Dazai stretched his arm out to grab the bag, and clutched it to his chest. He forgot Chuuya took his belongings with him.

"But here they are getting left behind. Heh. I understand that feeling a little too well."

The suicide enthusiast headed for home with Chuuya's belongings in hand. He could drop them off at the hospital during his visit. Although, he considered hanging on to an item or two.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Well, here's chapter eight. I hope no one thought I actually planned to kill off Chuuya. I don't think I'd be able to live with myself if I did lol I want to give a shout out to Kiri Marki for the review. I really appreciate the support~ Hope you and everyone else who keeps up with this fic, enjoys the latest chapter.**


	9. Chapter 9

Dazai stood in a daze at the coffee machine. He managed to get a whopping four hours of sleep, but that was it. The rest of the night was spent tossing and turning or staring at his ceiling.

He stared down at the coffee cup, taking a sip of the hot caffeinated liquid. He instantly regretted it because the drink was extremely bitter. Dazai was too tired to remember not putting sugar and creamer in it. He dumped three packets of sugar and three creamers in the coffee, stirring everything together. The liquid turning into a creamy beige color.

This time he downed his drink in one go, crushing the styrofoam cup, and tossing it into the nearest trash can. Dazai moved to the reception area in order to find out where Chuuya's hospital room was located. He got the information without a problem. Next stop, room number three-hundred nine.

Forget stairs, the brunet wanted to take the elevator up to the third floor. Usually the stairs were faster, but he wasn't in any hurry. It's not like Chuuya was going to be awake to greet him upon his arrival. He would have preferred that to the sight he was actually greeted with.

Chuuya laid unconscious in the hospital bed. He was hooked up to a few I.V.'s. One was making sure his body was receiving fluids, and the other one was replacing the blood he lost. The only relief he felt was from watching the short redhead breath evenly.

"I brought your stuff with me. Had to leave your knife back at my place though. I figured they'd never let me in if they found out I was carrying a weapon. I also took the liberty of leaving your tacky hat behind. You should be thanking me. When you wake up you can walk out of here with most of you dignity intact," Dazai was cracking jokes to make himself feel better. He knew Chuuya couldn't hear him. "I know you would prefer to settle things yourself, but I'm going to get back at Tachihara for you." _Not that you can stop me_ , he thought. "Please, wake up soon," Dazai whispered.

He placed a soft, tender kiss on Chuuya's forehead. Then, he left his bag next to the hospital bed. Dazai stood just inside the door frame. He turned around to get one more look at his soulmate, "see you soon."

It was time to begin phase one of his plan.

* * *

Dazai and Tachihara were set to meet at noon. The only way they were going to pull it off was if Ranpo didn't mention anything about Dazai being involved to Minoura. As a matter of fact, the police weren't going to be present during the exchange at all.

Ranpo purposefully left out another _small_ detail. The money Tachihara was going to acquire was supposed to be the divorce money he'd been hell bent to get his hands on. The detective and the suicide enthusiast were cheating the system big time, but life was full of risks one could either take or pass. Taking risks turned out to be an exhilarating gamble.

They decided to use the abandoned lot as their exchange point. Both brunets stood face to face. Dazai held a large briefcase at his side, containing the proper sum of divorce money.

"What's this all about?" Tachihara frowned.

"I would think it's obvious," he lifted the briefcase like he was showcasing a one of a kind product for an infomercial. "This is what you've been after the whole time, isn't it?"

"What's the catch?" Tachihara raised an eyebrow in suspicion.

"Getting the divorce money means you accept my terms of leaving Chuuya alone once and for all."

"What makes you so sure I won't shoot you, take the money, and do whatever I want with Chuuya?" the spiky haired brunet proposed.

Little did he know, Ranpo was on standby with a recording device in case the situation got messy. Dazai didn't plan on letting Tachihara in on that secret.

"You really want to know why you're not going to do that. Okay. I'll tell you. It's because you're already on the police's radar for what you did to my precious soulmate. Killing me will put you under more suspicion, and then they'll be aching to find a reason to arrest you. Do you really want to live your life under constant watch? One slip up and you'd be gone," he explained.

"Son of a bitch," Tachihara muttered under his breath. "Give me the money so we can go our separate ways, and I promise to never bother Chuuya ever again," he conceded.

Dazai set the briefcase on the ground, and took a couple of steps back. Tachihara moved in, snatching the briefcase. With two clicks he opened the briefcase to check and make sure there was money inside. When he was satisfied with the contents he shut the top back into place and left the abandoned lot.

Ranpo joined Dazai as he watched the spiky haired bastard leave, "how long do you think it will take him to spend some of the money?"

"I'd say some time this afternoon at the earliest," the detective replied.

"And at the latest?"

"In the evening."

"I can't wait to see that news story," Dazai grinned deviously.

* * *

Later on in the day, Dazai sat at home eating dinner. He ordered take-out because he didn't feel like cleaning his kitchen in case something decided to erupt. Take-out isn't particularly healthy, but it was a safe bet most nights. Sometimes he could con his friends into making food for him. Sadly, tonight wasn't one of those nights.

Dazai slurped cold noodles, and flipped through television stations. There were no interesting shows or movies on. Ultimately, he turned to the local news station. The first headline to catch his eye was; Breaking News: Man caught with large sum of counterfeit money.

It showed Tachihara on the screen being escorted by police officer Minoura. He was handcuffed and kept his eyes low, trying to ignore the people with cameras and their buzzing questions. Officer Minoura shoved him in the back of his police car. When they drove off the news channel switched to a new headline.

This victory was one for the books. Dazai wouldn't have to worry about Tachihara terrorizing Chuuya any longer. Nor did he have to worry about the fact that his soulmate was married. He supposed they weren't officially divorced since the money was fake, but he was too excited to care.

"I'm feeling generous. I might go buy Ranpo five times the amount of snacks," he glanced at the clock positioned above the TV. The convenience store down the street would be open for another few hours. He could get his shopping done now in order to avoid any complications that might arise in the morning.

It occurred to him how much Ranpo's snacks cost the first time. He multiplied the price by three, and the cost wasn't too bad. Multiplying the cost by five made it much more expensive.

"I retract my earlier statement. I'm only going to buy him three times the amount. It's not like he'll know I changed my mind."

Dazai occupied himself with humming a song about lover's suicide when he accidentally bumped into someone.

"My apologies. Are you alright?" he had a habit of turning on the charm for the ladies.

"I'm fine." Dazai instantly recognized the cute girlish voice.

"Gin-chan? Is that you? I thought you were busy studying abroad. More importantly, why didn't you tell me you were coming back?" Akutagawa was fun to pick on and a pain to get along with, but Dazai adored his sister.

"No one really knows I'm back yet. I'm here on break, and got in sometime yesterday. I wanted to visit my brother and Atsushi-san, but the jet lag is finally catching up with me," there was a hint of sadness to her voice.

"Is something bothering you?" they sat outside of the convenience store while they talked.

"As perceptive as always. My boyfriend went and did a really stupid thing, which in turn got him arrested," her shoulders slumped in defeat.

"Your boyfriend isn't Tachihara, right?" _Way to shoot yourself in the foot. There were plenty of other news segments on that you didn't watch. And hey, who's to say her boyfriend was even on the news? Not all crimes are news worthy. Too late to back out now._

"That's him. I'm guessing you saw the news?" she didn't know the full story of what happened considering she'd been studying abroad for roughly a year and a half.

Dazai didn't want to tell her that he helped orchestrate Tachihara's arrest. However, he did want to see if he could get a plausible explanation out of her for why Tachihara did what he did.

"Yeah. I saw the news," the suicide enthusiast nodded his head. "Answer me this if you wouldn't mind, is he your soulmate?"

"He is. How did you know?"

"Call it intuition."

Gin rested her head on her knees, "I wish I knew what he did to acquire all of that counterfeit money. I mean, I know why he did it."

"And why exactly did he do it?" Dazai was interested to hear what was behind Tachihara's motivation.

"He wanted to find a way to make a lot of cash in as short amount of time as possible to help me pay for my schooling. Before I left he said he would have it all sorted out," she explained.

A million and one thoughts were racing through Dazai's head. It was surprisingly more difficult to organize all of the information with the last piece of the puzzle in place.

 _Tachihara's intentions were actually pure? It was all an act? But he screwed Chuuya over for the sake of money. He screwed him in more ways than one! All of the divorce money was going to be put towards school? Gin and Tachihara are soulmates!_

"Is Tachihara bi?" Whoops. He was supposed to say that question in his head with the rest of his internal monologue.

"Yeah, but what does that have to do with anything?"

"Maybe we should go inside and buy some snacks and drinks because I have got the wildest story to tell you. It's all about what your soulmate did, and how he affected me and my soulmate. It could take a while."

Dazai and Gin shopped around for a little bit. He bought stuff for himself and Ranpo. Once outside of the convenience store again, Gin looked questioningly at Dazai.

"These aren't all for me. Most of it is for my colleague. I owe him, and he likes to be paid in junk food. Anyways, it's story time," Dazai thoroughly painted a picture of the events that unfolded over the last handful of days. He didn't leave a single detail out. "How long they were together before the marriage happened, I couldn't tell you. You'd have to ask one of our soulmates when you get the chance."

"I'm really sorry," she clapped her hands together, and did a slight bow. "I can't believe that was his hair-brained scheme. Poor Chuuya-san. To think he ended up in the hospital. I guess getting arrested will sufficiently serve as Tachihara's punishment. Oh! And please forget about the ring and the divorce money. Although, if Chuuya-san helped pay for the wedding the least I can do is find a way to give that back."

"Don't worry about it. This whole situation is so convoluted that I'm done. Like, extremely done."

"Do you think they'll put him away for twenty years?" Gin was afraid to hear his answer.

"That was my original goal what with the hell he made Chuuya go through. Fortunately for you ( _not me_ ), the colleague I mentioned earlier might be able to pull a few more strings ( _adding to the favors I owe him_ ). We won't be able to erase the felony attached to Tachihara's name, but the biggest issue he'll have to worry about is paying off the fine."

"You would really do that for me?" tears streaked her face.

"Of course ( _looks like most of this week's paycheck is going to Ranpo_ ). A lovely lady like you shouldn't be crying. You look much better with a smile on your face." he took her hand in his, and placed a kiss on top of it.

Gin tried to hide the blush on her cheeks by putting her mask back on.

"I know I shouldn't pry..." Dazai went ahead and asked without too much thought. "Does your brother approve of your soulmate? After all, he is quite the character."

"No. He would complain more if he didn't understand the soulmate bond. I know full well how much he loves Atsushi-san. Likewise, Tachihara and I made it to that stage of our relationship. What about you and Chuuya-san?"

"Chuuya doesn't know it yet, but we've cleared that hurdle already," Dazai smiled a warm genuine smile.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Surprise! I'm blessing you lovely people with a double chapter update because I can~ I bet you weren't expecting that. Or at least, I hope I caught someone off guard.**


	10. Chapter 10

It was an unbelievably slow morning unlike any other. Dazai worked an afternoon shift, leaving him with plenty of time to kill. He didn't feel like eating. In fact, he didn't feel like doing much of anything. That wasn't the complete truth. He wanted to visit Chuuya again, but there was something holding him back. Perhaps the dread of not seeing Chuuya awake for a third time.

Dazai paced around his living room still in his night clothes, debating about what he should do. He stopped mid-pace when he heard a knock on his front door.

"Who could that be at this hour?" the suicide enthusiast shrugged, and walked over to the main entrance. He must have been taking his sweet time because the person on the other side of the door knocked two more times. "Hold on!" he called, undoing both locks, and opening the door.

He was presented with a short redhead dressed in his usual attire minus the ridiculous hat. His cheeks were tinged red due to the chill morning air, and his striking blue eyes found Dazai's chocolate ones easily.

The brunet almost stopped his impulse to hug Chuuya. Emphasis on the almost. He wrapped his arms around Chuuya's small frame, pressing their bodies tightly together. The redhead grunted, signaling Dazai to let him go. Of course, Dazai didn't listen.

"Tch! That's enough. I was only released from the hospital an hour ago," Chuuya complained.

"A whole hour ago? And you're just now visiting?" Dazai pretended to sound hurt.

"I stopped at the brothel first to see Ane-san and Kyouka-chan. I get to keep my job and my little room. Ane-san also told me to stop by a certain place to see if my living quarters were changing."

It took Dazai a second to register what Chuuya meant by changing living quarters. Then, he embraced the redhead tighter, "no need to beat around the bush. You can absolutely stay here, Chuuya~! As long as you don't mind sharing a bed," he wiggled his eyebrows at the shorter male.

"Or I can take the couch," Chuuya strained to suggest.

"Nope. Not having it."

He forcefully pulled himself away from Dazai, "what the hell is that supposed to mean?"

The brunet planted his hands on either side of Chuuya's hips, leaning down to crash their lips together. He forged on, thinking why not, and went as far as to slip his tongue into Chuuya's mouth. To his surprise, the redhead didn't outright reject him, but he could tell Chuuya was flustered. Their tongues danced together in what ended up as a sloppy french kiss. Eventually they broke for air. A thin string of saliva clinging to their mouths.

"Oh I enjoyed that, but before we get carried away there's something I have to tell you. And no, it's not about where I hid your awful hat."

Chuuya punched him lightly on the arm, "this had better be important, and I'm finding my hat whether you want me to or not."

Dazai gave Chuuya the short version of what he heard from Gin the other night. Elaborating on how the story flowed together as a whole.

"It's understandable if you keep on loathing Tachihara. I wanted to give you all the details so that you can judge for yourself about what to do or how to feel," Dazai concluded.

"What you're saying is, he wasn't a complete asshole, but then he kind of was because I got royally fucked over for someone else's sake?"

"Basically," he confirmed.

Chuuya flopped down on Dazai's couch, sprawling his limbs out, "I don't even care anymore. I'll probably punch him the next time I see him, sure. But otherwise, I don't have the energy to deal with the impact he had on that small chapter of my life."

"So... Wanna continue from where we left off?" the suicide enthusiast asked suggestively.

There was another unexpected knock at his door. Dazai frowned in disappointment at the conveniently timed interruption. Whoever it was, they patiently waited unlike a specific someone who lounged on his couch.

"Be there in a moment~!" Dazai sang in a friendly tone. In response to Dazai's bright cheerfulness, Chuuya rolled his eyes.

The brunet opened the door, and immediately hid his look of disgust behind a facade of smiles and goodwill. He put his mask in place for Gin's sake. Tachihara on the other hand... Well, it seemed like Dazai wasn't quite ready and willing to let bygones be bygones. And as for Chuuya...

The redhead flew over Dazai's couch, practically teleporting in front of Tachihara. The spiky haired brunet nearly got out his intended string of apologies, but that was before Chuuya kneed him between the legs as hard as he could. Tachihara whimpered, going down hard. Then, Chuuya ground his foot into Tachihara's side.

"Next time you want to make money for someone you really care about consider getting a job and or taking out a fucking loan. Don't fuck with other people's lives or else it will eventually come back to bite you in the ass," Chuuya moved his foot, and went to reclaim his spot on the couch.

"That's it? You don't want a sincere apology from him?" Gin asked.

"There's no reason to bother. I said what I needed to say," the redhead waved his hand dismissively.

"You heard the man. He's satisfied. Have a nice day Gin-chan. Sorry if your boyfriend's a little crooked in the nether regions though," he shut the door, leaving Gin to figure out how to get rid of the mess outside of his front entrance. She was stronger than she looked, meaning she probably carried Tachihara away.

Dazai cleared his throat, "as I was saying earlier."

"I happened to glance at the schedule on your calendar. Shouldn't you be getting to work?" Chuuya reminded him.

"I might be able to get away with skipping this work day." It was a blatant lie, and they both knew it.

"Is it worth risking the chance of getting fired?"

"Why do you have to be such a downer?"

"I'm only being realistic."

"You wouldn't happen to want to come to work with me, would you?"

"Hell no," Chuuya replied bluntly. "Ane-san gave me a handful of days off, and I don't plan to waste them hanging out at your job with you."

"Be that way, but I'll be expecting the best welcome home in the history of ever when I come back," Dazai announced, proceeding to get ready for work.

"Sure. Whatever that means," Chuuya thought about looking for his fancy hat while Dazai was away.

"I hope you're not too stupid to figure it out," Dazai said in passing. He disappeared through the main entrance before Chuuya had the chance to throw anything at him. If that was one of the suicide enthusiast's challenges, then the fiery redhead was fully prepared to accept.

* * *

"The work day won't end! It's killing meeeeee!" Dazai let his body slide down his office chair.

"Complain less, focus more." Kunikida didn't bother making it a request.

"But I can't. Not when I know my soulmate is waiting for me in my very own home. Whatever will he do without me?"

"I don't know. Why not ask Ranpo-san since I'm about to go on lunch break," Kunikida was content with letting the detective whip Dazai into shape.

"He's not here to get me back on track. He's here to get snacks out of me!"

"The two of you can have fun annoying each other. I myself refuse to be late for lunch," the ever punctual man checked the time on his wristwatch.

"Perfect. You know why I'm here. Where are they?" Ranpo suddenly got very serious.

"Um, I haven't had the time to go get them. I busied myself with enjoying Chuuya, but it's not like I completely forgot."

"I sincerely hope you plan on making a detour on your way home," the detective urged.

"Here." A cough. "This should take care of it." An oversized bag was dropped between the suicide enthusiast and the detective.

They both looked up at Akutagawa. Their combined stares bothered him.

"What?" he asked sharply.

"Playing the role of the responsible brother? That's no fun," Ranpo puffed out his cheek. "I wanted to pester Dazai some more."

"Ryu! You're a life saver! No detours for me!"

"What did you just call me?" Akutagawa growled.

"You can blame your tiger for that one," Dazai laughed.

Atsushi sat at his desk when a shiver ran up his spine without knowing the cause of it. He reasoned it was a chill.

On the flip side, Chuuya scoured Dazai's home for his hat. He would have looked for his knife as well, but it was in plain view on the dark wood coffee table.

The redhead decided the best place to start was in the bedroom. His heartbeat grew a little faster with the knowledge that he was alone in Dazai's room. He took a deep breath, reminding himself he was in there to find his hat. Nothing more, nothing less.

He looked under the bed, finding his overturned hat with ease.

"This is Dazai we're talking about. There has to be a catch," he knew the other too well.

When he flipped his hat over a note fell out onto the carpet. He picked it up, and began to read the message.

 _I know, putting your hat under my bed was way too easy. I could have put it in one of the kitchen cabinets I know you can't reach, but I have my reasons. Have you thought about what I said this morning? I bet you haven't. Can't say I'm surprised. Need some help? I'm positive you do. Why not ask Kouyou-san for some advice? She should be able to steer you in the right direction. Try not to disappoint me when I come back. And in case you're wondering, yes. I did write this before I left for work. With love from your one and only soulmate, Dazai._

There was a stupid heart over the letter "i" in his name.

Chuuya crumpled the note in his fist, throwing it into the room's personal trash can. What did Dazai mean by asking Kouyou-san for advice? How would she know what to do? There was one way to find out. Chuuya dialed her number on his phone, and hit the call button. She answered on the third ring.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Ane-san."

"What is the status on where you will be living?"

It slipped his mind that he had yet to notify her about his decision, "I'll be living with Dazai." It was strange saying it out loud. Almost like a foreign concept. "I actually wanted to talk to you about an entirely different matter."

"Go on," she said.

* * *

 **Author's Note: It's not quite over just yet. One more chapter after this one, and then Fate Is A Cruel Mistress will be complete. Thanks again to Kiri Marki for reviewing. I honestly didn't think I'd write eleven chapter for this fic, but it was a pleasant surprise.**


	11. Chapter 11

***Warning* This chapter is rated LS. L for Lemon and S for Smut. Read at your own risk.**

* * *

Dazai's work day ended. He flew out of the office building at a million miles an hour. He prayed, which is not something he often did, that his note to Chuuya worked in his favor. He fast-walked the entire way home. It was too much effort to break out into a full run.

He flung his door open, stepping inside, "Chuuuya~! I'm ready when you are!"

The brunet hung his coat on the coat rack, and slipped out of his shoes all the while trying to spot his favorite petite redhead.

It took every ounce of will power Chuuya had to step out into the living room, wearing the awkward getup Kouyou brought.

"D-Do you want dinner ( _this is idiotic_ ), a bath, or ( _don't say it_ ) m-me?" he reluctantly finished.

Dazai stood there in awe. He beheld his soulmate in a pink frilly apron. Besides the apron, Chuuya wore his choker and his gloves. Dazai wanted, no⸻ needed to know if there was anything underneath the apron.

"Did Kouyou-san convince you to go the naked apron route?"

"Almost," Chuuya blushed. "I am wearing briefs under this thing."

Dazai stepped directly in front of Chuuya. He hooked his fingers in the band of Chuuya's briefs, bringing them all the way down to his ankles. "Not anymore," the brunet chuckled.

"Dazai..." the redhead seethed. He sounded threatening, but he was forced to take a step back not wanting to trip on his own pair of black briefs.

Dazai brought himself back into a standing position. Afterwards, he spun Chuuya around in order to grope his bare ass. He squeaked in surprise. The dark blush on Chuuya's face spread to the tips of his ears. Dazai found him to be irresistibly adorable.

"Don't forget I'm still recovering," Chuuya's voice was small and somewhat needy. The polar opposite of what he was normally like.

"Don't worry. We won't do anything too strenuous," Dazai purred in his ear.

He gently pushed the smaller male forward. Chuuya braced his hands against the wall in front of him. Dazai reached over, pressing two fingers against Chuuya's mouth. The redhead parted his lips, allowing Dazai access.

He twirled his tongue around the two digits, licking and sucking them as he went. Chuuya successfully coated Dazai's fingers with his saliva. The brunet removed his fingers from Chuuya's mouth, now prodding his entrance. Chuuya wanted to grip something physical when Dazai slid the first finger inside of him.

He settled for digging his nails into the wall once the second finger was in. The discomfort he felt was dulled by the pleasure from Dazai's every thrust. The waves were enormous after Dazai hit his prostate.

Chuuya could feel himself growing harder. The bulge on the front of the apron made it obvious enough. Dazai used his free hand to palm Chuuya's erection through the fabric. Chuuya cursed the whimper that escaped him because he needed more.

"What's the matter?" Dazai asked tauntingly.

Chuuya squirmed, "you know what I want." Stubborn as usual.

"I'm afraid I don't," he teased. On one end, his pace quickened. And on the other, his grip tightened.

"Dazai..." the shorter male moaned. "Don't make me say it."

"Say what?"

"I want skin to skin contact, moron," he confessed.

"And?" Dazai pressed.

"Stroke me off already!" Chuuya groaned.

"What's the magic word, Chuuya~?"

"Please, dammit!" Chuuya began to think Dazai was putting him through torture (it was his specialty after all).

"I could have done without the "dammit", but okay!" the suicide enthusiast beamed.

His hand disappeared underneath the apron to grip Chuuya's member. Chuuya let out a small gasp of surprise. Dazai's every touch set his skin ablaze. Dazai fingered and pumped his soulmate, keeping the same steady rhythm.

"Ngh! Ugh... Dazai, I'm gonna-" His muscles tightened around the digits inside of him.

"Already?" Dazai sounded amused, but he would be lying if he said he wasn't close to climaxing too.

He gave one last powerful thrust despite Chuuya's tight muscles, and gave one more arousing squeeze to Chuuya's member. The redhead couldn't hold out any longer. Neither could Dazai. They came together in white hot ecstasy.

A part of the frilly apron stuck between Chuuya's legs. The brunet had his own mess to contend with because he was fully clothed.

"Looks like we'll have to clean ourselves up," Dazai grinned awkwardly.

"I can use the apron, but I'll lend you a helping hand," Chuuya offered.

"Are you the same Chuuya from earlier?"

He scoffed, "take it or leave it." Chuuya removed the apron to wipe the sticky substance off his member and stomach.

Another bulge was growing in Dazai's pants from the sight of a naked Chuuya.

"Did Kouyou-san drop anything else off?"

Chuuya looked away from him, "And what if she did?"

"Wouldn't happen to be cat ears and a tail, would it?"

Chuuya fully faced Dazai with a glare. "You planned this from the beginning."

"I may or may not have called Kouyou-san before writing the note," Dazai said sheepishly.

The redhead crossed his arms, "I should have known." He retrieved the plastic bag containing the items anyway. "You know, the tail is a..." he was too embarrassed to finish his sentence.

"Butt plug?" Dazai guessed.

Chuuya's face flushed crimson, and he nodded.

"You're worried about how weird it's going to feel. I've got the perfect solution."

Dazai left the living room, returning moments later with a bottle in his hands. It was a bottle of lubricant. He grabbed the tail out of the bag, rubbing a thin layer of lubricant on the butt plug.

Dazai handed the tail to Chuuya. There was something wonderfully sensual about watching Chuuya insert the butt plug into himself. He made lewd noises each time more of the butt plug disappeared inside of him. At this point, only the tail could be seen. Then, Chuuya put the headband in place.

"You already have a collar to match. A shame there's no bell," the brunet playfully smirked.

"My choker is perfectly fine the way it is," Chuuya said defensively.

"I didn't say it wasn't," Dazai captured Chuuya's lips. The kiss didn't last long because Dazai was eager to have his sexy soulmate clean him thoroughly.

Chuuya dropped down on his knees. His hands fiddled with Dazai's belt, eventually unbuckling it. Then, his hand moved to unfasten Dazai's pants, zipper and all. Next, were the briefs, containing his large, pulsing cock.

Chuuya hooked his thumbs in the band, bringing them down enough to release Dazai's full erection. The smaller male dragged a finger down the length of him, causing goosebumps to prick Dazai's skin. Chuuya stuck the very same finger in his mouth like he was sampling Dazai's seed.

His hand roamed to the base of the suicide enthusiast's member, and his mouth covered the head. Chuuya's tongue pressed against Dazai's tip. He sucked hard enough to elicit a moan from Dazai. The brunet fisted ginger locks to anchor himself. Or else his legs were going to give out on him sooner or later.

Dazai's member was now fully sheathed inside of Chuuya's mouth. A thrust of his hips had him hitting the back of Chuuya's throat. The warm, damp cavern clamping down on his cock. Dazai came for a second time. Chuuya barely managed to swallow his load.

Chuuya pulled away to take a breath. There were remnants of saliva and come on Dazai's member. Chuuya took it upon himself to lick the rest off like he would a creamy popsicle. Meanwhile, one of his hands fondled Dazai's testicles.

Once everything was said and done, they collapsed on the floor together.

"That was amazing," Chuuya admitted.

Dazai grabbed his tail, yanking the butt plug out. A shudder ran through Chuuya's body at the sudden emptiness.

"Imagine what we could do when you've fully recovered."

Chuuya's mind threw itself into the gutter after hearing those words. He desperately wanted to hide his face under one of the pillows on the couch. Dazai would never get tired of making Chuuya a flustered mess.

The brunet kissed his soulmate on the forehead. "I love you," he whispered.

"Idiot..." Chuuya muttered.

"But I'm _your_ idiot," Dazai happily pointed out.

The redhead sighed a sigh of relief rather than one of irritation. "I love you too."

 _Finis_

* * *

 **Author's Note: Thanks so much if you've stuck around till the very end of this fic. Any and all support means a lot to me, and motivates me to keep writing. My next oneshot it going to be another Soukoku fic so please look forward to that if you like my work.**


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